The iconic hotel is situated near Central Park
Mukesh Ambani has acquired a controlling stake in the Mandarin Oriental in New York City for just over $98 million.
Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group is a Hong Kong-based hotel investment and management group focusing on luxury hotels, resorts, and residences, with a total of 33 properties worldwide.
Some of the locations include London, Dubai and New York.
The announcement was made on January 8, 2022, by Ambani’s company, Reliance Industries.
Reliance Industries announced the acquisition of the hotel’s parent company, a Cayman Islands-based firm controlled by the Investment Corporation of Dubai.
That company indirectly holds a 73.4% stake in the property.
It is expected that the deal will close by the end of March 2022.
Reliance stated that it would plan to acquire the remaining stake based on the same valuation if the hotel’s other owners decide to also sell their shares.
The Investment Corporation of Dubai took over the luxury hotel in 2015.
As of March 2021, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group still owned a 25% stake.
The $98.2 million price tag is significantly less than the valuation made by the Mandarin Oriental. It disclosed that the property was worth as much as $340 million.
Like the majority of hotels, Mandarin Oriental was severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Reliance said that the hotel raked in just $15 million over the whole of 2020, compared with $115 million and $113 million in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
The iconic hotel is situated near Central Park and overlooks Columbus Circle.
It marks a significant acquisition for Reliance.
Mukesh Ambani’s company is better known for its businesses in energy, retail and tech, but said in its filing that it was looking to add to its “consumer and hospitality footprint”.
This already includes a small but growing array of luxury properties in India, the UK and elsewhere.
Reliance currently has holdings in Oberoi Hotels, a collection of five-star resorts across India and six other countries, as well as the famous country club Stoke Park, which Ambani purchased in April 2021.
Ambani has been on a deal-making spree throughout the pandemic, racking up tens of billions of dollars to chase his goal of turning Reliance into the next major global tech giant.
In recent months, his own personal wealth has also increased to $92.9 billion, making him India’s richest man and the world’s eleventh wealthiest person.